RAMALLAH, Thursday, November 08, 2018 (WAFA) – The countdown for the return of the Palestinian refugees to their homes in Yarmouk camp near Damascus has started following an agreement with the Syrian government, the director general of the Political Department of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), Anwar Abdel Hadi, said on Thursday.

The return of Yarmouk camp residents to their homes will take place in the next few months and is linked to the completion of the reconstruction of the infrastructure such as water, electricity and sanitation, which is being supervised by the governorate of Damascus, Abdel Hadi told Voice of Palestine radio, noting that 40% of the houses are partially destroyed and can be rebuilt.

He stressed that Yarmouk camp will return to be the capital of the Palestinian Diaspora and will keep all the Palestinian symbols and offices of the various factions and others. He pointed out that President Mahmoud Abbas is following up the construction and restoration operations in the camp destroyed in the ongoing internal strife in Syria.

He said that the president is acting strongly to find donations to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) to play a role in the reconstruction of the camp, in addition to contacting donor countries to contribute to its reconstruction.

M.K.